PELL CITY, Ala. – Coach Pete Rich grew up in Pell City and was a standout athlete, playing football for the all-time winningest coach in Pell City High School history, Will Glover. That pair were to be honored during a very special exhibit in late March at the Pell City Museum. However, Coach Rich had to undergo emergency gall bladder surgery, with another procedure the following day.
The exhibit will still be open at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 29 at the museum, located in the Pell City Municipal Complex, Suite 200 on the second floor. Rich’s birthday celebration will be rescheduled when he is up to attending the event, but Coach Glover will still be honored with an exhibit.
Rich’s daughter, Lori Rich Billingsley, said, “The love that so many of you have shown for our Dad has been overwhelming. Your prayers at this time are greatly appreciated.”
There are a lot of Sylacauga people who fondly remember the Pell City legend from the time Rich and his family spent living in the Marble City as an assistant for Coach Tom Calvin at Sylacauga High School.
One of his former players at Sylacauga, Wayne Stephens, said of Rich, “He is loved and respected by athletes and students at two different schools across many years of coaching. He also has the respect and friendship of many other coaches over the years at Pell City and opponents.”
After high school, Rich went on to the University of Southern Mississippi before coaching at Jones Valley High School. From there, he served in Sylacauga. In 1968, he retired from coaching, but only for one year before Pell City called him home. He served two different stints as the head coach at PCHS and many years as an assistant coach for several head coaches at his alma mater.
The Pell City stadium was named in his honor in the 1990s. He is loved and respected by athletes and students at two different schools across many years of coaching.
His dedication to coaching is well known, as he found it quite difficult to step away from the game for good, but one of the things that sealed his legendary legacy as a coach were the values of character, discipline, teamwork, and leadership he shared with his teams.
